Report: Odell Beckham Jr. missed OTAs for something more productive than hanging out with Iggy Azalea
Whether it’s important or not, former LSU receiver Odell Beckham Jr.’s choice not to attend OTAs with the New York Giants has become a story.
Beckham has become one of the NFL’s biggest stars, and as such, his actions are often heavily scrutinized by the persistent media in the Big Apple. When the Giants held OTAs this week and Beckham was nowhere to be seen, the takes began to heat up.
He’s quickly developing a reputation for placing himself ahead of the good of the team, which is an opinion that gained steam when Beckham joined a group of teammates on a trip down to Miami just six days before the Giants’ wild-card matchup with the Green Bay Packers last season.
Following that trip, GM Jerry Reese asked Beckham to make better decisions as the face of the franchise moving forward. Although OTAs are purely voluntary, Beckham’s absence is notable.
Photos emerged this week of Beckham catching passes from former Texas A&M quarterback Johnny Manziel in Los Angeles, and reports then surfaced that he was hanging out with girlfriend Iggy Azalea at a bowling alley.
It seems that Beckham may have been getting in some private workouts of his own while in California, however. The Giants’ star worked out with Hall of Fame receiver Cris Carter for a few hours, according to the New York Daily News.
“His mind is in a great place. He knows what’s at stake,” Carter told the Daily News’ Gary Myers. “He wants to work out to get better. Sometimes a personal trainer is better than the strength coach for the team.
“With Odell, they go to extremes because it is him. In 108 days, he will be ready to play against the Dallas Cowboys. Is he with the Giants at OTAs? I don’t care. It’s not my job. My job as a former player is to help young players understand about the business. I’m committed to helping Odell get better. So as far as OTAs, that’s somebody else’s responsibility.”
That report was confirmed with videos posted on Twitter of the pair going through several drills.
I never seen a workout quite like this. Just a constant stream of footwork drills, resistance drills, and then this, which doesn't look fun pic.twitter.com/QEGDDVI6OR
— nick wright (@getnickwright) May 25, 2017
Here's a few more videos from @OBJ_3 workout today… this is some brick catching drill that evidently Jerry Rice invented. pic.twitter.com/YM4KAXWz4P
— nick wright (@getnickwright) May 25, 2017
The critique @criscarter80 had on this drill was that you're supposed to write numbers on the tennis balls and call them out when you catch pic.twitter.com/dr9e4HXPca
— nick wright (@getnickwright) May 25, 2017
It’s not uncommon for players to choose personalized, individual workouts over team-organized workouts, but continually opting to do so could have repercussions with teammates. There’s no questioning Beckham’s talent; when he’s on his game, there are few players more electrifying or dangerous.
There may not be another position in football more associated with divas than wide receiver, however, and Beckham seems to be the latest player to head down that path.